Song of Paserella iliaca [Passerella iliaca]
MASS. (Middlesex Co.) [Middlesex County, Massachusetts] Immense flight of Juncos
1876.
(April 5 [April 5, 1876]) experience have I enjoyed such a surfeit
of glorious music. Nearly every tree indeed
had its songster all invisible and adding
fairy like music to an enchanted scene.
Some of these performers excelled any that
I have ever heard before one in especial
bringing out his superb melody in perfectly 
moulded bars of rich liquid, delicious sound,
and with the same leisurely manner as
the hermit thrush. In commencing he
invariably hesitated just a thought after 
the first note. This bird really seemed 
to unite the best characteristic of the
fox sparrows song with those of the
thrush's and long after I had with
reluctance left the neighborhood of his
presence I could still catch parts
of his song and distinguish them
from those of his companions. What 
would I not have given to have
captured that bird that I might
always enjoy his music, but perhaps
it were better not: the beauty of the
surrounding scene might have lent 
a little and after efforts "in a gilded cage"
have proved a disappointment.
The whole country was literally
flooded with Juncos this morning.
I never saw anything like their
numbers; four or five thousand would
be a low estimate of those seen not a tree bush
or thicket but was filled with them.
Fox sparrows were also in great
abundance even through the city gardens.
The Juncos have already given up